Trick-or-Treat Ruffle Tote

Transcription

1 Trick-or-Treat Ruffle Tote Add a fashion-forward look to your favorite princess or ballerina's trick-or-treat bag with this ruffly look! The top of the bag provides the perfect canvas for too-cute-to-spook embroidery, while the cascading ruffles add a sweet, yet sassy accent. Project Needs & Notes - 1/2 yard sturdy fabric like denim, twill, canvas, or duck cloth; duck cloth is used in this demonstration - 1/2 yard print cotton fabric for inner lining; quilter's cotton is used here - 1 1/4 yards (total) print cotton fabric for ruffles: 1/2 yard of one print and 3/4 yard of a second print - Medium-weight (2.5 ounce) cutaway stabilizer - Air-erase pen for marking - One yard 3/4" wide decorative trim - Fabric glue - One yard of 1" wide strapping for handles The design used in this tutorial is K3307, Moth Masquerade Potpourri Border. Designs sized 10" x 4" are a good fit for this project. Finished Size: 14" x 17" This project was featured in the following: Spooktacular Halloween Lookbook Begin by working on the top embroidered piece of the tote. Use an air-erase pen to draw a 15" x 7" box on the duck cloth. A template is a printout of a design, and it's an excellent tool

2 to plan where to stitch. Print a template of the design from your embroidery software. If you do not have embroidery software, Wilcom's TrueSizer is a free program to use. Center the design inside the rectangle. Mark the center point as well as the vertical and horizontal axis lines. Remove the template and draw lines connecting the marks. Hoop the fabric with a piece of medium-weight cutaway stabilizer, aligning the marks on the fabric with the marks on the hoop. Attach the hoop to the machine and load the design. Move the hoop so the needle is right over the center point. Embroider the design. Use a 75/11 or size 11 sharp sewing needle when embroidering on sturdy fabrics. An embroidery needle may also be used. After embroidering, trim the excess stabilizer away from the back. Cut out the rectangle.

3 To prepare the bottom piece of the first side panel, cut a piece of the sturdy fabric to 15" x 12". Align the embroidered top piece on top of the bottom piece, right sides together, with the bottom edge of the top piece aligned with the top edge of the bottom piece. Pin in place and sew a 1/2" seam along the pinned edge only. Press the back seam open with an iron. Repeat the embroidery and piecing process for a total of two side panels. To prepare the ruffled fabric pieces, cut a piece of print quilter's cotton to 30" x 6 3/4". Fold one of the long edges over 1/2" to the wrong side and press. This will become the top edge of the ruffle. Fold the fabric over again 1/2" to the wrong and press. Fold the bottom edge over 1/4" to the wrong side and press. Zigzag stitch along the raw edge of the bottom fold. To create the ruffle effect, sew a 1/4" seam along the entire top edge of the fabric (the double folded edge). Sew back and forth at the start to secure one end, but sew straight off the opposite edge at the opposite end of the fabric. Next, sew another seam 1/4" under the first seam all along the top edge of the trim (secure the start and leave the opposite end open as you did with the first seam). Separate the threads at the open

4 ends. Hold the bobbin threads from each seam in one hand and bunch the fabric together along the seams with your other hand. Move the fabric down the seams ruffling as you go. Ruffle the fabric until it is the same width as the panel (the panel is 15" wide so the ruffle will be 15" long). Tie off the bobbin threads and trim them. Repeat this process for a total of 6 ruffle pieces (3 ruffles per side). Create 2 ruffle pieces with one print and 4 ruffle pieces with a second print and alternated them. Lay the side panel flat with the right side facing up. Position the first ruffle piece along the panel with the bottom edge of the ruffle about 1 1/2" from the bottom of the fabric. Pin in place and sew a 1/4" seam along the sides of the ruffle. Also, sew along the top edge of the ruffle to tack it in place. Next, add the second ruffle piece over the top of the first ruffle with the bottom edge of the second ruffle piece about 4" from the

5 bottom edge of the fabric. Pin in place and sew in place following the same steps for the first ruffle piece. Add the third ruffle piece over the second ruffle piece with the bottom edge of the third ruffle piece about 7" from the bottom edge of the fabric. The top edge of the third ruffle should align with the seam on the panel. Sew in place. To add the decorative trim, cut a length of the trim the same width as the panel. Sew or fabric-glue the trim in place over the top edge of the top (third) ruffle piece.

6 Add the ruffles and trim to the second side panel. Pin the ruffles in place along the side edges of each side panel so that they will not be sewn over later on. Align the two side panels together, right sides together. Pin in place, and sew a 1/2" seam along the side and bottom edges only. Turn the fabric right side out. The outer shell is now complete. To add the handles, cut two 16" lengths of 1" wide strapping. Position the straps along the top edge of the outer shell with about 1/4" of the raw ends extending out past the top edge of the fabric and with each end about 4" in from the top corners. Pin in place. To prepare the inner lining, cut two pieces of print quilter's cotton to 15" x 18" high. Align the two pieces together, right sides together. Pin in place, and sew a 1/2" seam along the side and bottom edges only. Insert the outer shell inside the inner lining, right sides together. Align the top edges and the side seams. Pin in place and sew a 1/2" seam along the top edge leaving about 5" open along one of the side edges in between the front and back handles.

7 Turn the fabric right side out and insert the inner lining inside the outer shell. Turn the fabric of the opening in 1/2" and press the seams. Top stitch a 1/4" seam along the entire top edge of the tote. Your favorite boys and ghouls will love going door to door on Halloween night with this delightful trick-or-treat bag. This project is featured on the

8 Embroidery Library Pinterest page. Pin it yourself using the "Pin It" button on this page. Questions or comments? Let us know! Send an to us; the address is